Butte semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1886-1890, 1887-05-07
THE TOWERS OF SILENCE.

A Visit to the Burial Places Of tho Par
sees-The vultures.
A hundred yards distant through the trees
intervening is one Of the gloomy Towers of
Silence, fully in keeping with its gloomy
mama. As visitors are not permitted to ap-
proach nearer than 100 feet, we are directed
to q small working model under a lilac just
of the garden. Here, with the aid Of a ref
erence card, we examine the internal arrange
ments of the tower.
1t il q r~oofess, circular building of stone
and painted white, 800 feet in circumference
and about sixty in height; thirty feet from
the base on the side facing the garden ID q
mall entrance, just large enough to admit
the bearers and body, closed by double iron
doors These doors open ON the main plat
form, which is paved with large slabs of stone
and divided into three rows Of shallow open
receptacles, into which arc placed the naked
corpses to await the coming Of the vultures.
The first, or outer row, is for males (adult),
the second for females and the third, or inner,
row for children. These three rows CORES
pond with the three moral precepts Of the
Zoroastrian religion-good deeds, good words,
good thoughts Between the rows are foot
paths for the bearers to move about. In the
center Of the tower is a great well $50 feet in
circumference and forty to fifty feet in depth,
into which the dry bones are thrown after
being denuded Of flesh. From this great
well toward the cardinal points of the COM
pass diverge four underground drains, each
Of which has at it's terminus, about thirty
feet away, Q small well The bottom of each
of these small wells is covered with a thick
layer of sand. Pieces Of charcoal and sand
.<o,cn M~o o1oo ~1onaN az kho nrN - >~xk S-~s>
Thus the rain water coming from the great
well and bringing with it the decomposed
osseous matter passes through two sets Of
filters for publication before entering the
ground, thereby observing q tenet Of the 70
roastrian r~eligion-that mother earth shall
not be defled."
A corpse Is carried into the tower by two
bearers, called Nassaslars, who alone are
privileged to enter; the clothes are then re-
moved, the body placed In one of the recep-
tacles and the bearers withdraw. Now is the
opportunity for the vultures to fulfill the
duties Of their Office. Upon the approach Of
tho procession hundreds Of them arise from
the tops Of the palms, which have become
withered and dead from contact with their
c%arniverous bodies, and hover in q circle
above until the bearers have gone. Then
like darts they descend-a boiling, seething
mass Of ~carrion, each particle of which, intent
only upon precedence, is quarreling and fight
ing with the other in its horrible work. In
an hour or two the corpse is entirely stripped
Of its flesh; the bones are then left until per-
fectly dried by the heat Of the tropical sun.
then thrown into the well, where, in course
of time, they crumble to dust. According to
the teachings Of Zoroaster, earth, fire and
water are sacred, and in order to avoid their
pollution it is strictly enjoined that the dead
bodies shall not be buried in the ground or
thrown into the sea.-Buffalo News